Ashley Juavinett, UCSD Professor, Author of “So You Want to Be a Neuroscientist?”
Title: “Anyone can be a neuroscientist — here’s how.”
Since the dawn of neuroscience, most of our data has been hidden behind closed laboratory doors. But these days, neuroscience data is freely out in the wild. Why aren’t you (or other people) hacking it yet?
Ashley Juavinett is a teaching professor in neurobiology at UC San Diego and the author of “So You Want To Be a Neuroscientist?” She received her PhD from UC San Diego, where she investigated the cell types and circuits underlying visual perception. Her current research focuses on developing best practices for training the next generation of neuroscientists. When she isn’t thinking or teaching, she is staring lovingly into her dog’s eyes.
Learn more about Ashley on her website and LinkedIn or follow her on X, BlueSky, and Mastadon.
Uduak George, SDSU Professor, NSF CAREER awardee, uses math and computational models to understand diseases
Title: “Understanding ductal network formation: why this is important”
Ductal network structures are common place in multiple organs in the body. These networks are vital for the proper functioning of the body. One example is the pancreas ducts which transport digestive enzymes secreted in the pancreas to the small intestine. Another example is the mammary ducts which facilitate the delivery of secreted milk to breastfeeding infants. In this talk, I will discuss our current knowledge of the very complex interactions that occur during ductal network formation and will highlight why it is important to gain more insight into these interactions.
Uduak Z. George, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at San Diego State University (SDSU). She completed her PhD in Mathematics at the University of Sussex, England, United Kingdom. Dr. George combines computational modeling with artificial intelligence and machine learning to gain deeper insights into the processes that drive biological development and impact health conditions. Dr. George is a recipient of the 2023 NSF CAREER Award. She was named an SDSU Presidential Research Fellow in 2023.
Trevor Valle, Paleontologist and Creative Consultant
Title: “Reentry to Runway: Landing a Space Shuttle”
Imagine you’re in a flying brick with stubby little wings 400,000ft over South America wrapped in a ball of 3000°F plasma hurtling toward the ground, aiming for a 300ft wide, 3 mile long strip of concrete 5000 miles away. You’re also traveling at around Mach 25 so you have 17 and a half minutes to go from really, really fast to zero, safely. And you only have one chance to do it.
Trevor Valle has been a Nerd Nite regular across the country since 2014, and is primarily known as a paleontologist, biologist, and role-playing game historian. What you might not know is that he is a 4-time graduate of Space Camp at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, has been invited to California Science Center events to speak about the Endeavour orbiter on display, and has successfully completed over two dozen simulated landings at Space Camp and NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
Learn more about Trevor on his website and Wikipedia page. And follow him on X and LinkedIn.